When Gov. Larry Hogan vetoed a bill requiring businesses to offer paid leave in May, he also signed an executive order creating a commission to study the issue and recommend a revised paid leave law.

Now the state Democratic Party is accusing the commission of keeping its meetings secret, violating state law and preventing the public from weighing in. On Thursday, party Chair Kathleen Matthews filed a complaint with the Maryland Open Meeting Compliance Board about the commission’s lack of publicized meeting dates and agendas.

The secrecy keeps people who disagree with the governor out of the conversation, said Del. Luke Clippinger, a Baltimore Democrat who sponsored the vetoed bill.

But as a committee of the governor’s cabinet, the commission isn’t required to hold open meetings, said Doug Mayer, spokesman for Hogan. He said the commission has been meeting one-on-one with business owners and employees to make sure people feel comfortable being honest.

“People feel threatened to talk about it,” he said. “People feel scared that they’re going to be ostracized.”

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Advocates have pushed state lawmakers for five years to pass a bill requiring businesses to offer paid sick leave. Earlier this year, they finally passed it. But Thursday afternoon, Gov. Larry Hogan vetoed the bill and urged lawmakers to develop a new, compromise bill.

Last month, state legislators passed a bill requiring businesses to offer paid sick leave to employees. But more than three weeks after the General Assembly’s 90-day session ended, it’s still not clear whether Gov. Larry Hogan plans to veto the bill or to allow it to become law.